Jonathan Martin hires successful sports lawyer to represent him

According to Fox Sports, Martin and his family have hired David Cornwell to advise and represent the family during the NFL's investigation into his bullying claims, and the hostile workplace environment the Dolphins allegedly fostered that contributed to Martin leaving the team last week.

Cornwell is a partner in the Sports, Media and Entertainment practice at Gordon and Rees. He's based in Atlanta. He was recently appointed as the Executive Director of the National Football League Coaches Association, representing the interests of nearly 500 assistant coaches in the NFL.

Cornwell was a candidate for the NFLPA executive director role that went to DeMaurice Smith in 2009. Since then he's had a contentious relationship with the player's union.

“Incompetence is the father of corruption. NFLPA has been ruined and has no legitimacy or credibility,” Cornwell recently tweeted regarding another NFL matter related to the NFLPA's investigation of local sports agent Drew Rosenhaus.

Back in 2012 Cornwell helped Milwaukee Brewers standout Ryan Braun avoid a 50-game suspension for allegedly using performance enhancing drugs. Cornwell successfully argued that Braun's drug sample was tainted. It was a landmark decision. However, last July Braun was suspended the final 65 games of the Brewers' season for his connection to the Biogenesis scandal.

Braun received an additional 15 games for his actions during the grievance that overturned his positive test from October 2011.

Cornwell’s background includes the representation of professional sports leagues (NFL), professional athletes (as a sport agent and legal representation), and a major sports licensee (the Upper Deck Company). He has also represented professional sports franchises, league and team executives, and coaches.

Cornwell, whose first job in sports was as the NFL's Assistant League Counsel in 1987, typically provides strategic legal and business advice, and assists clients in navigating the maze of complex business and legal issues that arise in the sports industry.